Peter King on NBC/Profotball.com

[tebowgirl15]

I saw a video clip of Peter King on NBC/Profootball.com talking about Tebow's future with the Broncos. Peter King stated that he must play well out of the gate to keep his job. Side note: I do wonder how Tebow will fair against the NFL's third hardest schedule.

[Alastor]

I saw a video clip of Peter King on NBC/Profootball.com talking about Tebow's future with the Broncos. Peter King stated that he must play well out of the gate to keep his job. Side note: I do wonder how Tebow will fair against the NFL's third hardest schedule.

What's currently the third hardest schedule may turn out to be pretty weak by the time the season starts.

Trades, free agency, draft, injuries, age, new coaches... All of that factors in. The NFL is a very dynamic environment. I wouldn't sweat the schedule just yet.

That said, I think that someone "playing well" is evident if taken in context. Tebow had a good game against the Steelers - or at least showed a lot of improvement over the three games he had prior to that one. That was evident even though we didn't exactly light up the passing scoreboard.

Likewise when we played Detroit and he had a bad game, that was evident too.

If his performance is taken in context then it'll be fine and he'll be judged on his own merits. I'm certain the coaches will take the opponents into account on such things.

[Louich]

What's currently the third hardest schedule may turn out to be pretty weak by the time the season starts.
Trades, free agency, draft, injuries, age, new coaches... All of that factors in. The NFL is a very dynamic environment. I wouldn't sweat the schedule just yet.

That said, I think that someone "playing well" is evident if taken in context. Tebow had a good game against the Steelers - or at least showed a lot of improvement over the three games he had prior to that one. That was evident even though we didn't exactly light up the passing scoreboard.

Likewise when we played Detroit and he had a bad game, that was evident too.

If his performance is taken in context then it'll be fine and he'll be judged on his own merits. I'm certain the coaches will take the opponents into account on such things.

Home:
Chiefs (ok), Raiders (who knows), Chargers (not easy), Browns (ok), Steelers (hard), Texans (not easy), Saints (hard), Bucs (ok)

Away:
Cheifs (ok), Raiders (who knows), chargers (no easy), Ravens (hard), Bengals (not easy), patriots (hard), Falcons (hard), panthers (who knows)

hopefully your right but when I look at the schedule....I'm kind of uneasy about it ...

Now that being said how come we get the 3rd strongest shcedule when we did not even play in the conference championship? Thats kind of baffeling no?

[Alastor]

Now that being said how come we get the 3rd strongest shcedule when we did not even play in the conference championship? Thats kind of baffeling no?

I have no idea. Two years ago after an 8-8 season we had the hardest schedule in the entire NFL. That one makes even less sense than this one. I'm sure they have a method to their madness, but I can't seem to figure it out.

[CoryWinget81]

Every year I argue with a half-dozen people about strength of schedule, and every year I'm right.

It means absolutely nothing. There are too many variables to just nail it down like that before the games have started. Hell, even AFTER the games have started.

[Frenchy180]

its all based on a rotation, it just so happens that we landed two of the hardest divisions in football this year... doesn't help that we finished first in our division which landed us Houston and New England

[MileHighInNY]

Now that being said how come we get the 3rd strongest shcedule when we did not even play in the conference championship? Thats kind of baffeling no?

It's not like the draft; the idea isn't that the SB winner gets the hardest schedule, the SB loser gets second-hardest, then the Conference Championship losers, etc. The idea is loosely that the best teams get tougher schedules, based on division rank matchups. But it really only affects two games in the schedule.

An NFL team's schedule, as I understand it, is created as follows: a home/away with each team in the division (2 each against SD, KC, OAK), games against each team in a pre-selected division in the AFC (AFC West plays AFC North in 2012, so we get BAL, PIT, CIN, CLE), games against each team in a pre-selected division in the NFC (AFC West plays NFC South in 2012, so we get NO, ATL, CAR, TB). That's 14 games already set, with no relation to seeding or strength of schedule at all. It's simply division vs. division.

The remaining two games are scheduled according to team strength, in that the final two games are set against teams that finished in the same rank in their divisions last season. As the 2011 AFC West Champions, the Broncos will play two other AFC division winners in 2012 (we get NE and HOU). That's the only part where "strength" matters at all.

The Chiefs, who finished at the bottom of the AFC West in 2011, will play each AFC West team twice, all of the AFC North, and all of the NFC South--14 games identical to the Broncos. Their remaining two games will theoretically be "easier" than Denver's because they will play two other teams who finished in the cellar of their own divisions, sparing them our matchups against the Patriots and Texans. But that's the only way their schedule will be any different than Denver's.

\Strength of Schedule is overrated in the NFL, IMO.

[ERoyal248]

On paper, the schedule is a monster.

Pats, Ravens, Steelers, Bengals, Texans all playoff teams last year, and should get better.

Saints, Falcons, Panthers will all be tough.

And our whole division is pretty solid too.

Though, teams vary year to year, have injuries, etc.

[Pruke]

After FA & the draft, I think SOS is largely (not completely) meaningless.

[txbroncobackr75]

Alot of that is True. The teams change a lot year in and year out

but the fact remains, Some Teams like the Pats, Saints, Steelers, Ravens, and I would even add the Texans are very consistant Teams. those to me are the hardest on our schedule due to that fact.

Then if you add the conference games, which are never easy. that schedule looks brutal on paper.

[HavoK471]

You've got to beat the best to be the best